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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25037863">The Farm</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/fran_22/pseuds/fran_22'>fran_22</a>, <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TeddyTheCat/pseuds/TeddyTheCat'>TeddyTheCat</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Farm AU [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>MacGyver (TV 2016)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Caring Jack, Gen, Homeless Mac, Hurt Mac, Mac gets a big brother, Maddie the dog, Whump, farm life, jack finds a son, mac gets a new dad, teen Mac</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 09:09:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>18,847</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25037863</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/fran_22/pseuds/fran_22, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TeddyTheCat/pseuds/TeddyTheCat</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Mac has lived on this forgotten farm for a year and has made it his home, but now, someone called Jack has bought the place. Mac is worried that he will lose his home; the one home he's ever felt safe in. Or could the arrival of Jack be the start of something better for him?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Farm AU [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2071950</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>130</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>90</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Jack buys the farm</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi this is a new story i've been working on for a while now, so hope you all like. </p><p>this story is been edited by the very talented NYWCgirl and TeddyTheCat any mistakes still they are my own :) i so apriated both of your help. </p><p>Also sorry for people waiting on next chapters of other stories. My mental and physical health have been bad and I’m finding hard to put things into words for them, like i know where they're going, but how to get there my mind is all over the place.</p><p>I hope you are all staying safe and well during these unusual times.</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Mac has to find a way to save the only home he's ever felt save in.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I want to say a huge thank you to NYWCgirl for editing this chapter for me, so if you read it unedited, you can now read it edited. :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mac could’nt believe his home for the past year had a sold sign on it. Well technically Mac didn’t own the place. He didn’t even knew who did, but this is where he had made a home after his dad threw him out at age 13. The farm had been abandoned as long as he could remember and that is why he had come here. No one would look for him here, well it was not like anyone would. He had no family, just his dad and he certainly didn’t have any friends.<br/>
Mac just hoped that whomever brought this place was not one to walk around all ten acers of it. As Mac knew he was quiet far away from the main house. He had made an old rundown shed his home. He had patched it up form bits he found around the farm and there was a stream nearby for water. He had made his own vegetable garden where he ate from. He had found them growing in one of the farms old vegetable patches what surprised him, so he moved them and lucky for him, they gave him enough to live on.<br/>
Jack hadn’t had an easy life, he had spent most of it in the army with a couple of stints in CSI undercover work. Finally he got out of both and decided to go back to the only other life he knew, farming. He had grown up on his parents farm in Texas. He had seen this one online and knew it needed a lot of work, but he had the money and the time. Plus having all the land mend nobody could disturb him. It’s not like jack didn’t like people, he had a big family, but the army made you think weird things and suffering bouts of PTSD, he preferred to deal with it on his own. Well not entirely on his own, he had his dog Maddie.<br/>
Over the next few days Mac watched as a caravan was put near the farm house along with building supplies. Then he saw who he assumed was the owner turn up. Mac was quiet taken aback on how the guy looked. He had well defined muscles and was big built and looked kind of scary and his dog looked more like a small bear then a dog. Mac also noticed his hair was quiet short so probably ex-army, Mac guessed.<br/>
Maybe he could scare this guy off. He obviously had money, maybe he could buy a different farm and leave the only place Mac felt safe and secure in alone. But that would mean the guy probably would lose money. Who wanted to buy this place, it had been years, before this guy turned up and bought it.<br/>
So Mac had another idea, maybe he could secretly help this guy do up the farm and not get caught and if said guy find Mac, he can say he’s useful and beg to stay. His tiny little bit of land he lives on, really doesn’t impact the man that much.<br/>
Mac spent the next few days up a tree watching the man getting to work, learning what he was doing. Then in the evening Mac snuck quietly to were Jack had been working and trying to make as little noise as possible continued on whatever jack had begun.<br/>
Lucky for mac Maddie had decided he was a friend she had smelt him but decided he wasn’t a threat to Jack. Jack who was a light sleeper stirred a bit at the noise Mac made when he went to get more wood from the pile but as Maddie hadn’t growled or anything Jack put it down to animals or the wind and fell back asleep.<br/>
When jack went back to do more work on the porch the next morning, he noticed more had been done, well he knew that was impossible as it was just him here so maybe he had been so tried last night he hadn’t realized how much he had done.<br/>
Over the next few days jack noticed how he was getting work done faster than he thought he was. But then one morning jack spotted something with his highly trained eyes. They were trained to detect the smallest of details. He spotted some blood on one of the tools he was using. He knew he hadn’t hurt himself, so that must mean someone else is here. But who? Jack hadn’t seen anyone, or heard anyone and Maddie hadn’t alerted him to anyone. And it couldn’t be a ghost as ghost don’t bleed.<br/>
Jack decided to go in to town to get some cameras, so he could watch what was going on and who was helping him do his farm up as it was an odd thing to do. And jack wasn’t found of not knowing who was near him or could be watching him.<br/>
That night Mac came back with his injured hand, he had cut it on a rusty nail. It was sort of painful but he bandaged it up with an old damp cloth and hoped it wouldn´t get infected. He hadn’t noticed Jack had put cameras up as he spent most of the day catching up on sleep he had missed from working through the night on the house.<br/>
The following morning jack checked the cameras and was shocked to see a skinny young boy doing the work. Jack didn’t get why the boy was doing it in the first place and why a kid that young was out in the middle of the night. He also noticed the badly bandaged hand and knew it had to be the person who had hurt themselves the other day. Jack decided that evening he was going to lay in wait for the kid and see what his intentions were as you don’t normally just do this sort of thing.<br/>
That evening jack waited. At one point he thought the kid wasn’t coming as it was getting later and later. Jack thought the kid had finally given up his weird helping when he saw the kid come out of the bushes. He was stumbling a bit and in the moonlight Jack could tell the kid looked sick. The kid move towards were Jack had been working but before he even got there, the kid passed out. Jack came out of his hiding spot and went over to the boy. Jack tried to wake the boy but without luck, so decided to scoop him up and take him back to the caravan. He could feel how cold the kid was. This worried jack.<br/>
Mac woke up to something heavy laying on his nauseated stomach, his body ached and as he opened his eyes, he realized he wasn’t in his hut and the thing on top of him was a dog. Mac then saw Jack come through the caravan door. He looked at Jack terrified as Maddie went to meet her owner. This man was not supposed to see him, he was not supposed to be in this man’s home. What was this man going to do to him?<br/>
Before Jack could say anything or Mac could work a way out of the situation, his body betrayed him and he was throwing up all over Jack’s bedding. He knew he was now done for.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Meeting Jack</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you again to NYWCgirl for editing this chapter for me. You are a star! :)<br/>I’m aiming to get out a chapter a week for this book. Fingers crossed. :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jack grabbed a random bowl of the side and put it under Mac’s chin while rubbing the boy’s back. Jack had grown up in a big family and had loads of nieces and nephews, so looking after a sick kid was nothing new to him. His first instinct was to offer comfort, but he was surprised when he felt the kid flinch under his touch.<br/>
‘It’s all right kid, I’m not gonna hurt you. I want to help you.’ Jack said gently.<br/>
Mac was shocked. One, this big scary looking guy sounded so gentle and kind and two, he wasn’t hurting him. This guy looked like he could do some serious damage to someone, if he wanted to. But the hand rubbing his back was gentle. Nothing was making sense, maybe it was because he felt so ill.<br/>
‘Just let it all out, you’ll feel better for it,’ said Jack, ‘do you want some water?’<br/>
Mac nodded and Jack got Mac some water. Mac is surprised when Jack helped him drink it as his hands were so unsteady.<br/>
‘Is there anyone I need to call kid, let them know your safe.’<br/>
‘No sir.’ Mac mumbled quietly.<br/>
‘Call me Jack, I’ve have enough sirs to last me a life time, what do I call you kid?’<br/>
‘Angus.’<br/>
Jack smiled at the name ‘Did your mum have a craving for burgers when she was having you kid?’<br/>
Mac just looked down at the bed trying to avoid looking at the mess he made. Jack noticed the sadness in the kid’s eyes.<br/>
I’m sorry kid, I didn’t mean to upset you.’<br/>
‘It’s OK.’ Mac whispered.<br/>
‘Well, I don’t think I could call you Angus unless you want me to. Do you maybe have a nick name like Gus?’<br/>
Jack saw Mac cringe at that idea.<br/>
‘Mac? My surname is Macgyver and I like to call myself Mac, but no one lets me.’<br/>
‘Then Mac it is.’ Jack smiled.<br/>
‘But what is a little kid doing fixing my farm up for me?’ he said.<br/>
‘I’m not little, I’m fourteen.’ said Mac with a little pout that reminded Jack of a puppy, he was surprised when Mac mentioned his age, as he looked fare younger.<br/>
‘OK, I stand corrected, but I would like to know you’re not in trouble.’<br/>
Mac looked at him trying to figure this guy out. Normally whatever Mac said, he was in trouble. It didn’t matter if he was right or not. But before Mac could speak again, he threw up, as his hurt hand made itself known again. Mac cradled his hand with his good hand close to his body once the sickness had subsided.<br/>
‘How about we get you and the bed cleaned up and I take a look at that hand of yours.’<br/>
Mac nodded. Jack helped Mac out the bed and to the little bathroom in the caravan.<br/>
‘You can wash up in here, just shout if you need me and I’ll see if I got anything you can wear. And don’t lock the door in case something happens and u need me.’<br/>
Mac nodded again.<br/>
Jack found Mac a t-shirt and some new boxers he hadn’t worn yet. He knew that his trousers would be massive on the kid, so this would have to do. He told Mac he’d put them by the door. Then he stripped and made the bed and cleaned out the bowl. By time this was done Mac was out and dressed. Jack couldn’t help but smile as the neck of the top Mac was wearing, was sliding of his shoulder and went past his knees.<br/>
“’Come sit down.” Jack said as he gestured to the spot on the sofa next to him where he had a first aid kit ready to look at Mac’s hand. ‘Do I need to grab the bowl again, in case you’re sick again?’<br/>
Mac shrugged, he felt a bit better after the quick wash but still felt a bit nauseous. Jack grabbed it and put it on the table nearby.<br/>
‘Just in case.’<br/>
Mac sat down still unsure what to make of this Jack guy. Jack took his hand and lets out a low whistle.<br/>
‘Got yourself a bit of an infection there but we’ll clean it up get all the nasty stuff out and hopefully it heal on its own but it may hurt a little.’<br/>
Mac nodded, but let out a little yelp when Jack begins to clean the wound.<br/>
‘Why don’t you tell me why you’re helping me fix my farm up while I’ll do this and I be done before you know it.’<br/>
‘So I can still have my home and you don’t throw me out if you think I’m not useful?<br/>
Jack looked at him puzzled.<br/>
“I think you may have to explain a little bit more, hoss.’</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Telling Jack</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for editing, NYWCgirl! Big big big thank you for all the wonderful comments on the last two chapters! I’ve never had so many wonderful comments for something i've written, so I’m really happy this book is well liked. :) I couldn't wait till week end to share it with you guys, so here is chapter 3. Enjoy.<br/>*WARNING*<br/>This chapter does mention child abuse and neglect in it, so if that triggers you please don't read.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mac swallowed, hoping Jack wouldn’t get cross with him when he tells him. How do you tell someone you’re a fourteen year old unwanted kid, who lives on their land because no one wants them. </p><p>Jack could see the fear in Mac’s eyes and could feel how tense the young boys became.<br/>
“Whatever you tell me I won’t be cross I want to help you.”<br/>
“You won’t hurt me?” Mac whispered, then gulped as he realized what he said.<br/>
“Now why would I want to hurt you, you’ve done nothing wrong as far as I can tell and I’m not one for hurting kids or adults for that matter, unless said adult deserves it.” Jack said gently. Jack was trying to work out what this kid had been through to think Jack was going to hurt him.<br/>
Mac nodded. Then took a deep breath to calm himself before he tells Jack what he wants to know. But he didn’t want to let Jack know everything, he didn’t know if he could trust this guy just yet and Mac’s track record with people had made him well guarded.<br/>
“I was a disappointment to my dad. Last year when I came home from school he had changed the locks and my belongings were waiting on the door step. I picked them up and walked here. I remember it had always been empty. I found the shed and made it my home. It’s just inside the woods near the stream. I did take some vegetables out the garden to grow for food and some odds and ends to use to make it more homely. I’ve not left since I read the school books I had in my bag or the old books what were left in the house. But I promise I’ll put them all back. Everything I took from the place I’ll put back. I just wanted to show you I could be helpful just to keep the shed. But that’s wrong. I know it’s yours. You need it. I’ll go.” Mac said, beginning to ramble.<br/>
Jack couldn´t believe what the kid had told him and from his training he knew the kid had left out big parts of his story, but jack wasn’t going to confront him. What kind of parent would change the locks on their kid so he had to find shelter in a rundown shed of all places and fend for himself? Jack looked at Mac just as he finished cleaning and bandaging the wound. For some reason he felt he needed to protect this kid. He knew the life he lead he would never have a family of his own but somehow he had been led to this kid who looked like he’d never been shown any kind of love and needed looking after.<br/>
“All done.” Jack said, not saying a thing to what Mac had said. How could you tell a kid his dad’s an asshole and should be locked up and the key thrown away? He couldn’t tell the kid he couldn’t live in his make shift home but Jack also didn’t want the kid to live a life in a shed with no future.<br/>
“Thank you.” Mac told Jack. The kid was starting to look pale again. Mac got up to leave the caravan and head home as he didn’t want to impose on Jack, as Jack had done enough for him already. Jack hadn’t said he couldn’t still live in his shed. As Mac stood up, a wave of dizziness hit him and Jack managed to catch him before he face planted on the floor.<br/>
“Where you off to kid?”<br/>
“Home.”<br/>
“Kid.. Mac, I think it’s best if you stay here hoss. I don´t like it knowing you were out there on your own like this.”<br/>
Jack laid Mac on the bed.<br/>
“But..”<br/>
“No buts, I’ll feel better knowing you’re here safe.”<br/>
“But this is your bed.”<br/>
“You need it more than me right now and anyways I’ve got a nice comfy sofa to sleep, Maddie here wouldn’t mind sharing it.”<br/>
Mac decided to agree more worried about what would happen if he disagreed, as so far he hadn’t been hurt by this man. </p><p>++++++</p><p>The following morning Mac was woken up by the smell of breakfast. Jack smiled at him as he saw Mac wake up.<br/>
“Morning sleepy head, do you think you can manage pancakes or would your tummy prefer some toast?”<br/>
Mac would loved to have said pancakes but he knew if he did they probably would make a re-appearance and Jack may not be too happy with that, so he stuck with the toast.<br/>
Over the next few days Jack helped Mac get back to full health which was easier said than done as Mac kept insisting he was fine and should go home as he’d taken too much time away from Jack already. Plus he didn’t want to get used to having three meals a day and somewhere warm and dry to sleep. He didn’t want to get used to the idea of someone caring for him. He had always wished for a normal loving family but at age fourteen he had learned he didn´t deserving that and had to survive on his own.<br/>
Mac was happy and secretly sad when the day came and he was fully better. Mac was presented with a full plate of pancakes as his last breakfast in the caravan or so he thought. Jack sat down with his coffee and looked at Mac.<br/>
“Now that you’re feeling better I thought maybe you could show me this shed of yours.” smiled jack who was curious to know were Mac had made his home.<br/>
Mac stared at Jack. This was it, what he had been dreading, the loss of his home. Mac leapt out of his seat, the cutlery in his hands falling to the floor and he ran to the door and flung it open. He just ran, hoping jack wouldn´t follow him or if he did, he hoped, he couldn’t catch him.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. The shed</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you to NYWCgirl for editing this chapter for me. :)</p><p>Thank you for all the wonderful comments so far. :) So glad so many people are enjoying it and thank you for all the kudos as well. This means a lot.</p><p>chapter 5 is done and waiting to be edited. I can't wait to share it with you guys as it's one of my fave chapters so far and I’m currently writing chapter 6.</p><p>Also as this story progresses additional tags will be added.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jack had been shocked when Mac leaped up and bolted for the door and was out of it before he could do anything. He could understand why Mac had done what he did. Jack thought maybe it could have been the week in the caravan with him. Maybe he couldn’t take it anymore or maybe it was Jack’s idea for him to show Jack his home. Jack had no intension of taking it away from Mac. It never occurred to Jack that Mac might think otherwise.<br/>
Over the next few days  Jack didn’t wake up to mac having helped him with some bit of his projects on the farm house and this concerned Jack. All kids of thoughts were running through Jack’s head, like what if Mac had hurt himself when he had run out or what if he had relapsed. Before Jack had a chance to think about what he was gonna do, a rumble of thunder was heard overhead and Jack knew then he had to check on the boy, especially if a big storm was coming in.<br/>
Jack remembered that Mac had said something about the woods and some kind of river or stream. Jack grabbed the map he had of the farm he had been given and looked to see were such a place was on the land. He found said place right near the out skirts of the land. The woods were the last bit he owned before you got to a main road.<br/>
Jack jumped in to his truck with Maddie and headed in the direction of the woods. It wasn’t an easy place to get to cause the old dirt tracks were over grown but the truck just about managed it. In the bright light of his headlights he could see a shed. He was amazed it was still standing. It had definitely been well patched but he was sure if a big guest of wind came along, it would be flattened.<br/>
Jack killed the engine and jump out the truck telling Maddie to stay put. He grabbed a torch he had on the floor behind the driver’s seat. And headed towards the shed. When he got closer he could tell there was no light this worried him a bit cause if Mac wasn’t in there, it meant he could be out their somewhere in this storm. He opened the shed door and shone his light around. The beam fell on a small figure huddled in a corner with a tatty blanket wrapped round himself sitting on the most thread bare rug Jack had ever seen in his life. And to make his heart break even more there were random pots scattered around the place catching the incoming leaking water.<br/>
Mac jumped when he heard the door open and covered himself fully with the blanket hoping that whomever had come in would not notice the movement and think it was just a pile of old material.<br/>
Jack slowly went over to the pile not wanting to spook the boy.<br/>
‘Mac, it’s me Jack.’ he said calmly and softly, ‘I’ve come to see if you’re OK, can you let me see your face?’<br/>
At first Jack thought Mac wasn’t going to move from the pile but then he saw movement and Mac’s dirt stricken face appeared, looking up at Jack. A mixture of shock and worry on his young face. Worried Jack was here to take his home from him and two he was surprised Jack had come at all, as it had been days since he had seen him.<br/>
Jack felt like his heart was broken, Mac looked far worse, then the last time he saw Mac.<br/>
‘How about we go back to the caravan, there’s a hot chocolate with your name on and that chicken stir fry you liked.’ Jack said, hoping it would convince the kid to come with him.<br/>
Jack thought he saw a little smile appear on Mac’s face, but it disappeared before he was even sure it happened.<br/>
Jack was trying to think how to get Mac to come to him when all of a sudden there was a bang and part of the shed roof fell in from all the water collected. Before any more rood came crashing in and potentially harm Mac or himself, Jack pulled Mac in to his arms and carried him to the truck and sat him in the passenger seat.<br/>
Jack noticed Mac trembling in the cold and took of his jacket and wrapped it round Mac before getting in to the driver’s side and heading back to the farm. When he glanced at Mac, he smiled at the kid who had nestled in to the warmth of his jacket and all he could see was a mass of blond curls.<br/>
Jack decided it was best to carry Mac in, even though Mac insisted he could walk, but Jack didn’t want Mac to lose the warmth of the jacket wrapped around him so he just picked Mac and his coat up and after shutting the truck door with his elbow hurried them all in side.<br/>
He deposited Mac on the sofa before going to find something warm the kid could wear. It turned out to be a jumper that hung of the kid and another pair of jack’s new boxers. He made a note to himself to get this kid some cloths that fit him as he couldn’t let the boy wear the few cloths he owned. Besides Jack’s cloths swam on him.<br/>
Jack had to smile once Mac had changed in to Jack’s clothing as he looked ten not fourteen with his curls falling in to his eyes and his big baby blue eyes. Jack new then he just wanted to protect this kid no matter what. Just as a rumble of thunder and a clash of lighting hit over head and Jack felt a small hand grab the shirt he had on and he looked down and saw Mac trembling from the noise of the storm.<br/>
Jack gently pulled him in to a hug<br/>
‘How about you come help me make the hot chocolates and this stir fry and while we’re doing that think of a movie we could watch.’<br/>
Mac just nodded in to Jack’s chest but made no attempt to move out of Jack’s embrace, he felt safe for the first time in a long time and he didn’t want to let it go just yet even though he knew soon it would be back him and his shed or worse him and well a side of a road somewhere or maybe he could find a bridge for shelter were no one could find him. He’d just have to see.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Shopping trip</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>As always a huge thank you to NYWCgirl for editing this chapter for me!</p><p>I hope you enjoy this chapter. :) Also thank you for all the lovely comments so far. :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jack woke up the following morning to find a mop of blond hair tickling his nose and Mac practically on top of him fast asleep. Jack smiled as he remembered how Mac couldn’t sleep because of the storm and they ended up putting Die Hard on and Mac soon fell asleep cuddled in to him. But when Jack had tried to put Mac to bed the kid had woken up, so Jack had no choice but to sharing the bed with Mac and by the looks of it become the kid’s pillow. In all honesty, Jack didn’t mind.<br/>
As he lay watching Mac sleep, he thought of what he needed to do that day and the first thing was to go in to town and get Mac some clothes and maybe a few other bits for the boy but most certainly cloths.<br/>
Mac hadn’t seemed to happy when he awoke and Jack had suggested shopping. Especially as Mac had no money and told Jack this. Jack said it was a thank you for the work Mac had done to help on the farm house so far but Mac didn’t agree. He had done it for his shed and the clothes he had were small but they kept him decent enough.<br/>
‘Fine but one outfit, no more,’ Mac said. He had worked out Jack wasn’t going to give up, but he still didn’t like the idea of going in to town. What if someone who knew him, saw him. Plus, technically, he was meant to be in school, it was a Wednesday after all.<br/>
But when Mac told him this, Jack just said no one would pay attention to them and if they did, he would deal with it. So an hour later him and Jack were parking up near the shops and heading to some local clothes shops.<br/>
Mac headed straight to the sale section. If jack was insisting getting him some clothes, then he was going to make sure they didn’t cost the guy a lot.<br/>
‘Mac come over here.’ said Jack, holding up some jeans and t shirts he’d already found and thought Mac may like.<br/>
‘Go try these on, they’re age 14/15 and these are 15/16.’<br/>
Mac just looked at jack, he’d never tried cloths on before in his life, he just wore what he was given.<br/>
‘Go on then, they won’t bite.’ Jack smiled, ushering Mac towards the fitting rooms.<br/>
Mac took the clothes and went to try them on. The 14/15 fit fine and the 15/16 were massive on his skinny frame. Mac was embarrassed when jack insisted on seeing what size fitted him best.<br/>
By the time Mac got dressed again Jack had a trolley full of clothes. Mac looked at him, then at the trolley.<br/>
‘Jack, that’s not one outfit.’ Mac stated, looking at the jeans and t-shirt he had in his hand, which were just fine for him.<br/>
‘Yeah it is one outfit for bed, not my fault it comes in a two pack, one pack of underwear, they come in packs of ten, as we can’t have you going commando, socks don’t come in singles either hoss, plus you need one outfit for hot weather, one outfit for doing messy work, one coat, one hoodie and those jeans and t-shirt are buy one get one free. And you definitely need some comfy joggers cause who doesn’t?’ Jack summed up, ‘so I’m sticking to the one outfit rule.’<br/>
Mac was about to protest that he meant one outfit in total, not per category but one look at Jack, he knew he wasn’t going to win this. It was the same when jack had him try on shoes, he ended up with boots and sneakers and sandals. Mac had never had so many clothes in his life or anyone spend so much on him, he was finding it all a bit too much.<br/>
Mac was glad when they were leaving the store as it meant no more money was going to be spent on him.<br/>
‘Let’s put this back in the truck and head to that dinner over there, I don’t know about you but all this shopping makes me hungry.’<br/>
Mac just looks at Jack. Hadn’t they spent enough for one day and eating out was a treat Mac had never received since his mum had passed away. And Jack had already bought him cloths. Mac looked at Jack then at his feet.<br/>
‘What’s the matter? You’re not hungry?’<br/>
‘I am.’<br/>
‘But…’<br/>
‘You’ve already got me clothes for which I still haven’t done enough work for to earn them and I definitely didn’t earn food at a diner.’ Mac explained, still looking at the ground.<br/>
Jack was shocked. What kind of life had Mac had before he ran away? To think you had to earn the right to eat at a dinner. In Jack’s eyes eating at the dinner was no different to eating at the caravan, only difference was he wasn’t the one cooking it.<br/>
‘Kid, you don’t have to earn anything. I don’t know what you were taught before we met, but it wasn’t right. Food is not something you have to earn, OK?’<br/>
Mac nods.<br/>
Once the stuff was in the car they headed to the dinner and sat at one of the tables. Mac was amazed at the amount of choice he got to choose from. So he went with a barbeque burger with a side of onion rings and a chocolate milkshake, as it sounded yummy.<br/>
As they were waiting for their food Mac looked around the dinner taking in his surroundings. Just as he was looking at the door, it opened and a person walked in. Someone who Mac hoped he would never have to see again.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hi,</p><p>I have a few ideas for this story that I would like to run by someone, as i have a lot written down and they can't all happen to poor Mac, so I’d be grateful for any help.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. The man</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>As always a huge thank you to NYWCgirl for editing this chapter for me.</p><p>Also thank you to Flowing_River for helping me get my ideas together, as the next few chapters would be one jumbled mess without you :) and also thank you for teaching me tumblr. I’m still not sure i got the hang of it but it's cool so if you want to follow me, it’s fran-22. And also thank you for teaching me what whump means :)</p><p>And thank you to TeddyTheCat for one of the best and longest comments I've ever had. It made me smile. If anyone knows me, you know how hard I find it to spell and put things into words, and from other sites I’ve had a lot of hate and I have been told to give up, so when I get lovely comments, it makes my day. The MacGyver fandom is so welcoming!</p><p>*Warning*</p><p>Just to warn everyone: the next few chapters are going to get a bit rocky and there's gonna be a lot of hurt and some abuse in them, so big warning when you’re reading!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mac quickly looked away hoping the person hadn’t seen him. But luck wasn’t on Mac’s side, he soon felt the presence of the person next to him.<br/>
‘Hello Angus, it’s nice of you to finally show your face again. Your father has been so worried about you.’ “said the person, ‘he’s been looking for you ever since the day you never arrived home from school.’<br/>
Mac tried to move away but ended up just hitting the wall next to him. Jack looked at the guy talking to Mac and the vibes Jack was getting was to get the kid out of here in one piece.<br/>
‘Who are you?’ jack asked.<br/>
‘My name’s Murdoc I’m Angus’ uncle, not by blood but I’ve known his dad well before little Angus was even thought of.’ Murdoc smiled in a creepy way,  ‘I see you have been looking after my nephew well. I hope he has caused you no issues, but I will be taking him now. His dad will be so happy to see him again alive and well.’<br/>
Jack could see that Mac was far from happy about this guy being here and Jack didn’t like the sneering tone the guy used.<br/>
‘I think that you should leave. Let me and the kid eat then if necessary I will take him to his father’s address.’ said Jack.<br/>
‘And why do you want to do that?’<br/>
‘Well as far as I gather most run away kids normally have a price tag on their heads and I could do with the reward money as I am in between jobs right now.’ Jack claimed. He was hoping this Murdoc guy would play along so he could get Mac out of here safely.<br/>
Mac couldn’t believe what Jack was saying. Was this why Jack was been so nice to him? Was this why Jack had insisted they had lunch here? Was it a plan to give Mac back to his dad? Mac needed a plan, he had to get out of here. And get out of here fast. He couldn’t go back to his dad and the one person he had started to trust in his life since his mum had died, turned out to be been a liar.<br/>
‘Fine you have one hour.’ said Murdoc, writing down an address on a napkin, ‘See you soon Angus.’ he turned and left the diner.<br/>
Mac was glad Murdoc wasn’t hanging around. It made his plan or what he had of a plan so far, a bit easier.<br/>
‘Bathroom.’ Mac managed to stammer out, getting up from his seat before Jack had a chance to say anything to him. Jack pointed to the corner of the diner were the sign for the toilets were and let Mac go. Thinking the scare from the guy had made him need to go. But after a few minutes Jack began to worry when Mac hadn’t come back. He waited a few more minutes before getting up to find out if the kid was OK. He’s surprised when he finds the bathroom empty. Where the hell was Mac?<br/>
Once Mac had made it in to the safety of the bathroom he looked around and spotted the window. He managed to climb up on to the sinks and squeezed out of it, dropping to the other side, he made his escape even if his body was now hurting form the fall to the ground. But he couldn’t think about that now he had to get away, far away before anyone spotted him.<br/>
He couldn’t risk going back to the farm for his belongings as that be the first place Jack would look. And Jack had a car and could get there faster then he could and would be waiting for him. Mac decided to head out of town the opposite side from the farm. Hopefully in the next town he would be able to catch a train and take him far away and to try and start a new life.<br/>
Mac had barely made it across town when a familiar car pulled up but he ignored it and pushed himself to run faster but Mac suddenly felt himself been grab and pulled back towards the car and shoved in. He knew shouting and fighting would get him nowhere apart from in trouble. He just couldn’t believe he had been caught.</p><p>‘You were always so easy to catch Angus, thought this past year you have alluded both me and your father. But now you’re back where you belong and that friend of yours will never find you.’<br/>
Meanwhile Jack was worried. What if that man had come in and taken Mac but then Jack had ruled that idea out as Jack had eyes on the toilet door the entire time and no one had gone in or out since Mac had entered it. Jack then noticed the window. Had Mac managed to get out of them? They weren’t actually big but neither was the kid, maybe he had gotten so frightened by that man he’d gone back to the truck or something.<br/>
Jack quickly left apologizing to the waitress about not needing their meals as he kid had gone missing. He quickly made his way back to the truck only to find no Mac, maybe he had gone back to the farm so getting in to the truck Jack drove slowly keeping his eyes peeled to see if he could spot Mac, but no such luck. He searched the farm from top to bottom with Maddie and still no sign of the kid.<br/>
‘I have a bad feeling about this girl.’ said Jack scratching Maddie behind the ears as he looked at his phone debating whether to phone an old friend of his</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Getting help</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>As always a huge thank you to NYWCgirl for editing this chapter for me.</p><p>Double update :)</p><p>I am working on the next chapters. Just health has not been great this week, so I’ve fallen behind a bit, but all the notes and stuff are written up. I just need to get my brain to work and finish writing up.</p><p>*Warning*</p><p>This chapter does mentions abuse. It’s one of the rockier chapters.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Meanwhile Mac had been driven out of town to the city where he was then dragged out the car and lead up the steps to a big old town house.<br/>
‘James, I’m home and look who I have got with me?’<br/>
James came out the room he was working in and saw Mac.<br/>
‘So Angus, you have made your way back to us. Did you miss me?’ said James grabbing Mac’s face to make him look at him, ‘Where did you find him?’<br/>
‘Some diner with an old man.’<br/>
‘You better not have told him anything boy.’ James sneered gripping Mac’s face tighter.<br/>
‘I… ha….ve….n’t.’ Mac managed to get out with James holding his face.<br/>
James let go of Mac and let him drop to the floor.<br/>
‘Tie him up and put him In the basement, I’ll find a use for him later.’<br/>
Mac’s hands were tied behind his back and put in a cold dark basement.<br/>
‘See you later Angus.” Murdoc smiled as he shut and locked the door.</p><p>Jack had decided to have one more look around town in case the kid was too scared to come back. When Jack thought about what he had said, he hadn’t given the kid any explanation after so maybe the kid felt he couldn’t trust him either. Jack was honestly just trying to protect the kid but how was a kid with more hurt then Jack knew about, would know that? Jack had pretended they hardly knew each other.<br/>
After another two hours of searching he looked at his phone again and this time he didn’t hesitate to make the call.<br/>
‘Dalton, nice surprise.’ came the female voice sharp on the other end.<br/>
‘pleasure’s all mine Matty. I need a favor.’<br/>
‘Well I didn’t think you’d be ringing for a social call Dalton. What have you done now?’<br/>
‘Why you think I’ve done something?’<br/>
‘It’s you, now you have 5 seconds to tell me what you want or I’m hanging up.”<br/>
‘My kid’s missing.”<br/>
Matty goes quiet for a split second.<br/>
‘When did you get a kid, Jack.”<br/>
‘He came with the farm.’<br/>
‘Jack, kids don’t come with farms. Is this some kind of joke?”<br/>
‘No Matty it’s not.’ Jack explained to Matty how he met Mac to the incident at the diner. ‘I just got this feeling there’s something not right about the guy. The kid was downright terrified.’<br/>
‘What did you say his name was again? I’ll get Jill to run it threw the system.’<br/>
‘The guy’s name was Murdoc and the kid’s name is Angus Macgyver…….hang on a minute, he gave me an address.’ said jack remembering the napkin he’d stuffed in his pocket. He read out to Matty.<br/>
After a few minutes of waiting what felt like a life time to Jack, Jill got a bit of luck.<br/>
‘The address is not registered to anyone with the surname Macgyver or any one called Murdoc. But I had a hit on Murdoc, he’s wanted in eight states for arms and weapons dealing and guess who’s his accomplish? Someone called James Macgyver.’<br/>
‘I bet that’s the kid’s dad.’<br/>
‘Any idea where he could be? I need to get that kid back.’<br/>
‘Unfortunately no. They always stay under the radar, but I may be able to get something of the CCTV and traffic cams to give us some leads but it may take me a while.’<br/>
‘Fine but I want in, please Matty. I can’t sit and do nothing here knowing the kid is in danger.’<br/>
‘Jack, you’re retired.’<br/>
‘Matty please, I couldn’t live with myself knowing I could have done something if anything happened to that kid.’<br/>
‘Fine but you better be on your best behavior Dalton. I’ll send you coordinates of where to go you know the drill.’<br/>
‘Thanks Matty, I owe you.’<br/>
‘Thank me when you have the kid and I have my bad guys behind bars.’<br/>
Jack put the phone down and let out a breath, he didn’t know he was holding. He knew with Matty and her team on his side he would find Mac. He just hoped the kid could hang on till he got there.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Silance is painful</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i want to say a big thank you to TeddyTheCat with out her help this chapter would not be done and id still be stuggerling with it. </p><p>*Warning*</p><p> for physical abuse in this chapter! This is the darkest chapter and as bad as it will get in the book</p><p>i dont no when chapter 9 be up got a medical apoiment tomorrow what will knock me off my feet for a few days so may not be ready for the week end so you may have to wait till the following week for it sorry guys</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mac heard the door to the basement open and looked up from where he was kneeling on the floor, seeing his dad come down the stairs. <br/>“Hello, son.” <br/>Mac didn't reply.<br/>“Oh, we playing the quiet game now, are we? Just so you know you can make as much noise as you want down here and no one will ever hear you.” James smiled cruelly. “I think we should play one of our little games.” <br/>Mac gulped. He knew he was in big trouble, when he watched his father take off his belt. This was going to hurt, but he knew he couldn't let his father know how scared he was. He couldn't let him win. <br/>“If you answer correctly you won't get this, but any wrong answers and you'll be very sorry,” James threatened. “First of all, I want you to tell me who that man is, what you have told him and why you were with him today!” <br/>Mac had to think fast. He didn’t know much about Jack, to be honest, except that he had been in the army and had been brought up on a farm, but he didn’t want to drag Jack into this. Jack may not have wanted him, but Mac didn’t want the guy to be hurt. <br/>“His name's Jack, he's a farmer, he found me trespassing on his land and I've told him nothing.” <br/>“You're lying, Angus! Your uncle tells me that he knows you had run away from home.” <br/>“He's not my uncle,” Mac shouted, “and yeah, I told him that, but not why or anything.” <br/>“I don’t believe you!” James thundered as he advanced toward the terrified boy.<br/>Before Mac could brace himself for the pain, he felt the belt hit him hard across his back. He fell forward, smashing his face on the concrete floor. Blood was dripping from his nose.<br/>“I need to know who you told about me and my plans, Angus, and I need to stop them before they ruin everything!” <br/>“I don’t know your plans” he managed to stammer out.<br/>“Oh Angus, I gave you a chance. I've been told so many times how smart my son is, yet here he is acting as dumb as anything.” James threw Mac very disappointed look and shook his head. “You could have been something, Angus, me and you and your uncle! Rich and happy! Your brains, if you ever used them, could have helped us achieve so much, yet you're just as weak as your mother.” <br/>“Don’t talk about my mother,” Mac said as he tried to roll onto his side to get up, but with his hands tied behind his back, it was hard to push himself up. <br/>“Stay down!” yelled James.<br/>The last thing Mac remembered was seeing his dad raise his foot and then a pain in the back of his head, before darkness consumed him. </p><p>James climbed back up the stairs and locked the basement door behind him.<br/>“Did you get him to talk?” Murdoc asked when James had come back up.<br/>“No, I think he needs more of his special lessons to remember how to behave.” <br/>“So he told you nothing about that man or if he knows about us?” <br/>“All he said was his name’s Jack, he's a farmer and he found him trespassing,” said James, “but who takes a trespasser in and takes them to a diner, instead of throwing them out?” <br/>“So you think he told this Jack about our plans and he wants him in on them, as farms don’t earn that much?” <br/>“Could be we’ll have to sort this Jack out and show him not to mess with the big boys, but we need to find him first.” <br/>“Oh, that won't be too hard. I have my ways and then I can show him some of my, uh, ‘special’ skills.” Murdoc grins maniacally.</p><p>Jack didn’t know how many traffic laws he broke to get to get to the coordinates Matty had sent him. He knew time meant everything if he wanted to get Mac back in one piece. <br/>From the outside, the building looked like any other office block, but Jack had a feeling the inside would be anything but ordinary. And he was right. When he walked through the doors,Matty walked up to him to greet him.<br/>“This way Dalton,” she directed.<br/>Jack smiled. Matty hadn’t changed one bit. She lead him to a large room with glass walls. Two other people were already inside. Matty quickly introduced them.<br/>“This is Jill Morgan and that is Russ Taylor. Jill is a brilliant hacker and, well, Russ... he's like you, Jack, just with more brains.” She gave Jack one of her famous Matty smiles. “You two, this is Jack Dalton. He's going to be working with us on this case.” <br/>Matty tapped the glass wall to make it go opaque. “Right, let's get down to business. We need a plan how to find Mac and these men before it's too late. So Jack, I need you to tell us everything, and I mean everything, you know about this kid and we will piece it together with what we've found and go from there.”</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. is it to late</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>thank you to teddythecat for helping me with this chapter </p><p>*warnings*</p><p>thier is some violance in this chapter think it may cme under child abruse.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Ah, so you’re the famous Jack Dalton I've heard so much about over the years,” said Russ, coming closer to Jack. “When you work on this team, you will behave and listen to me, as I know how you don’t think till it's too late and I like my team to come home in one piece!”<br/>
“Hang on, I've never not got anyone home! Thanks to me, everyone I've watched,  whether from my time in the army or CSI they've all come home, but maybe this time I may make an exception for you, pal,” snarled Jack, getting up in Russ' face.<br/>
“ENOUGH, BOTH OF YOU!” shouted Matty, “I think just to be safe, and this mission to be a success, I will get in Desi and Sam as well. Jill, can you get them to come here now, before these two idiots kill each other?”<br/>
“Hang on now, Matty, I don’t need a babysitter,” Jack protested.<br/>
“Do you want this favour or not, Dalton?”<br/>
“Yes Matty,” he conceded, sitting down in the seat furthest from Russ and waiting for Sam and De-si to make an appearance.<br/>
It wasn't long before the two women walked in.<br/>
“Des,” smiled Jack.<br/>
“Jack! What are you doing here?” asked Desi in surprise.<br/>
“There's a kid in danger and I need to save him, but I need help.”<br/>
“I'm in,” said Desi without thinking twice. Jack had helped her so many times with out asking for anything in return and risking his life in the process. This was the least she could do.<br/>
It wasn't long before everyone was sitting down and Jack was talking about Mac and how he'd come to know the boy and what had happened at the restaurant. Then Jill took over and said they managed to see Mac being dragged into a car on the side of town opposite to the farm, but unfor-tunately it had had false plates. However, Jack did confirm that the driver was the guy from the restaurant. Unfortunately, they lost sight of the car once it left town. </p><p>“So now what? He could be anywhere,” Jack blurted out in frustration.<br/>
“Not necessarily,” replied Sam, “we could look into known places where these two men are known to hang out at and narrow it down.”<br/>
“Sounds good. I like that, but how long's that gonna take?” Jack inquired. He was growing more and more impatient by the minute.<br/>
“Already on it,” Jill assured with a smile, “I've got nine hits.”<br/>
“Nine? We can't check them all. We need to narrow that down. ”<br/>
“That may be easier said than done. None of them are less than 600 miles from where Mac was taken!” Jill looked at Jack with a mixture of despair and pity in her eyes.<br/>
“That can't be right.” Jack sighed.<br/>
“Wow, well done, Sherlock! It means there is something off radar and we need to find it!” Russ interjected sarcastically.<br/>
“Really? So who is Sherlock now?” Jack fumed.<br/>
“I see no brains.”<br/>
Jack clenched his fists and took a deep breath, glaring daggers at the other man, and started to move toward him. He was fully prepared to take on the provocation and welcome it as an outlet for some of his pent-up frustration and fear for the kid that had stumbled into his life and his heart. He had barely taken one step when Matty's sharp voice stopped him in his tracks.<br/>
“GUYS, SHUT IT! THIS IS NOT HELPING MAC!” she snapped and both men retreated immediately. </p><p>****<br/>
Murdoc was sitting in his office, trying to find out more about this Jack character. He had a gut feel-ing that something was not right about him. It didn’t take him long to find him, as only one farm in the area had been bought by someone called Jack, Which then gave him the guy's last name, Dal-ton. The more he researched, the more he didn’t like.<br/>
“James, you better get in here, now!”<br/>
“What is it, Murdoc?” the older man asked, frowning.<br/>
“Take a look at this. Your son's been talking to an ex CSI agent and Delta Force member! Man, this is not good! You better find out what he's told him and I'll make arrangements for a new place of work, as your kid could have jeopardized our whole operation!”<br/>
James’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “If I'd  had my way with him to begin with, he wouldn't even have been my kid. He wouldn't  have been here in the first place and don’t worry, I'll make sure he talks, or he'll never see the light of day again!”<br/>
“Well, make it quick. We need to move fast.”<br/>
James stormed back to the basement, grabbed Mac roughly by his hair and pulled him up. He shook the boy to wake him, drawing pained whimpers from him. Once James was sure that Mac was aware enough to understand him, he threw him hard against the wall.<br/>
“Listen here, Angus. We know all about your Jack Dalton, former CSI and Delta Force. You failed to mention those little details, didn't you? I wonder why. You know how much I hate liers so you got one more chance, Angus! What did you tell him?”<br/>
“Nothing,” Mac managed weakly through his pain.<br/>
“You rather go through all this pain to protect someone you don’t even know, than to help your own father? Well, I see you made your choice.”<br/>
Mac could feel James getting closer to him and before he could process what was happening, James stomped hard on Mac’s leg with his heavy boot. Mac cried out in pain. But James grabbed his hair again and smashed his head against the wall to shut him up, sending him back into the world of darkness.<br/>
“Nighty night, Angus! When you wake up, no one will hear your cries for help and no one will ever find you,” James spat and let his son's unconscious body drop to the ground with a thud. Without another look at him, he went back up the stairs and locked the basement door one final time.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>not sure yet but may be a slow couple of weeks with posting for this au as posting somthing for lucas birthday so please look out for it and read it if you like :) its also my birthday next weekend so wount be working on this. so thier may be a surpise with chapter 10 in the next two weeks but regular posting will resume the week end after next or that week if that makes any sence lol :)</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. disaster strikes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>big thank you to teddythecat with help with this chapter very apraited :) </p><p>surpise manged to get a chapter in :) its short but exting i hope. next chapter will be longer i promise easpeialy as thier be a bit of a wait for it </p><p>i dodnt even no what to put for the warning for this chapter as not sure it needs it or not</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>James and Murdoc throw as much of their stuff as they can into the van. They have wiped clean anything that might link them to this place; not that there was any to begin with, but you never know.<br/>“We’re leaving the kid?” Murdoc asks.<br/>“Yeah, well, I locked him up in the basement. He won’t dare talk and no one will find him anyway.” <br/>“Good. I'm guessing he didn’t talk to you, either.” <br/>“Nope. I don’t know what he told this Jack guy, but we need to get out of here and lay low for a while.” <br/>Murdoc frowned. “But what if they find the kid?” <br/>“Don’t worry, they won't. I have a plan.” </p><p>****<br/>“Jill, can you look for any properties that have been bought around here within the last year?” asks Sam.<br/>“Sure. May just take me a while.” <br/>Jack jumps up from his seat and starts pacing nervously. “Well, we can rule out my farm, as we know I'm not a suspect, so that’s one less to look at.” <br/>“State the obvious, Mr. Cowboy,” Russ scoffs.<br/>“I ain’t taking any more shit from a limey,” Jack snaps back.<br/>“You really are thick!” <br/>Sam’s about to point out Jack’s mistake, but Matty cuts over the top.<br/>“Right Jack, you go with Desi. See if you can spot any places on that way out of town that look worth investigating. Russ and Sam, you speak to the locals and Jill will update you on her finds here. Now go!” <br/>They all leave the Phoenix and head to where Mac had last been seen. Sam drives out from there with Jack, while Desi and Russ park up and start asking the locals if they have seen anything.<br/>It’s a good half an hour, before Jill calls Sam, saying she has found a house that may fit what they’re looking for. 10 miles out of town, there is a house; it was never sold but it mysteriously went off the market a year ago, but there was no mention of who bought it or anything. It would be worth looking into. <br/>Jack tells Sam to step on it. If Mac is there, they’ve got to get to him before any more harm can come to him. As they near the house, Jack can see no cars anywhere and the house looks overgrown and deserted. He does notice the tire tracks in the driveway, though. They are fresh, which means that someone has been there recently. But is he too late? Has Mac been taken somewhere else? Maybe he has been left behind there. Jack has to check. <br/>He gets out of the car, gun drawn just in case Mac's kidnappers are still around. Sam copies him. They scale the perimeter of the house first and find nothing, so Jack decides that it's time to check the inside. He carefully opens the front door and steps inside and that’s when he hears it: an ominous click. Before he can do anything or even register what's happening, he is thrown backwards with immense force as the house explodes, sending debris flying and Jack's world goes black along with it.</p>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. jack makes a desion</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>thank you to teddythecat for helping me with this chapter </p><p>ive worked out thier is going to be 15 chapters in this book but as i have so meny idears left for these characters that thier will be stoeys coming off this book :) witch i hope you will all enjoy </p><p>I am no medical expert, so I probably got medical things wrong. I do apologize in advance.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sam has been lucky enough to duck for cover just in time, as she was a little away from Jack, and is now shouting through the comms that they need immediate assistance and medical there now. <br/>Russ and Desi are first on the scene and are taking in the sight of the burning building and Sam tending to Jack. Jack is lying on the ground, bleeding from various lacerations and not moving.<br/>“Do we know if anyone was in there,” says Russ.<br/>“We’re not sure. There were no cars here, so we presume they've left before anyone caught up with them.” <br/>“Only good thing is we can assume Mac is safe for now.” <br/>“Erm, guys, I think you need to reassess that,” comes Jills voice.<br/>“What do you mean?” asks Desi, alarmed.<br/>“We've just had an email come through from an anonymous source, talking about remains in a basement. I've checked the plans to the house and it does indeed have a basement.” <br/>“You’re not saying what I think you’re saying...” Desi blanches, her words trailing off.<br/>“Then let's find that basement,” Russ jumps in, “if anyone's inside, we have to get them out now!” <br/>“Russ, it's too dangerous,” Matty warns. “The debris is unstable! Crews are on their way.” <br/>“There's no time! If there’s the trace of a chance the child is in there and still alive, then we have to go look, now!” </p><p>Desi walks around the sides of the house to see if she can see any basement windows, while Russ walks carefully through the rubble, avoiding the smoldering bits as the fire is dying out slowly.<br/>With her tac boot Desi breaks a window and manages to squeeze through it and drop down to the floor. She turns her torch on and starts her search of the stuffy underground space. At first she thinks the basement is empty but then she spots a small figure lying motionless on the floor in a corner, covered in a thick layer of dust and debris. She dashes over to him and checks for a pulse with baited breath, which she releases in a relieved huff when she detects a barely noticeable thud in the kids neck. She gently brushes some of the dirt from his face and the light of her torch reveals dried blood and a heavy bruise underneath the grime. Further examination shows a clearly broken leg.<br/>“Guys, I got him! His pulse is weak. We need to get him out of here asap! He’s badly injured and unconscious.” <br/>“The rescue team are here now. They're going to make a path through the rubble to the basement to create a safe route for the medics. We’ll send them down to come down and get him as soon as it’s secure,” Russ informs her. “Just stay with him, okay? If he comes around, keep him as calm and still as possible.” </p><p>It takes two hours to get Mac out of the basement and to a hospital. He doesn’t even stir during the entire ordeal. The injuries his father has inflicted on him earlier are severe and he’s probably in for at least several days in hospital. After he’s been patched up and stabilized enough for transport, he’s transferred to Phoenix medical.<br/>Jack has been incredibly lucky to even be alive after being hit by the shock-wave of the explosion. In fact, apart from a slight concussion, he’s only sustained a few cuts and bruises from his backward tumble and once he’s cleared by medical, he immediately goes to find Mac. His heart breaks seeing the boy so still, his wrists in bandages where they had been bound too tight with rope. His face shows all different shades of purple where he has a broken nose from having his face smashed into the concrete floor. More dark bruises cover the entire left side of his face. There are deep cuts all over his back, which are clearly the result of a beating, most likely from a belt or something like that. Several of his ribs are bruised or even cracked; plus he’s suffering the aftereffects of dehydration. His largest injury is the broken leg. His father has stomped on so hard he’s snapped the bone in two.<br/>Tears are freely running down Jack's face, as he watches the boy sleep. Painkillers and a light sedative are helping him getting the rest that his battered body so desperately needs. He looks small in that hospital bed. Vulnerable. No kid deserves to be treated that way! Fathers are supposed to protect their kids and teach them everything they’ll need in life as they grow up, not to throw them out or use them as their own personal punching bag. <br/>Jack is sitting next to the bed, the kid’s IV-free hand held in his, his thumb absentmindedly stroking the knuckles. He has no idea for how long he’s been sitting there when a nurse comes in and kicks him out for a routine check and change of bandages. <br/>Jack knows what he has to do. He heads to the war room.</p><p>“I want him,” Jack says firmly by way of a greeting.<br/>“Excuse me?” Matty is not quite believing what she’s hearing. <br/>“I want to adopt him, or foster him, or whatever it takes,” He hesitates, “provided that he wants it too, of course. I can't risk that kid going through something like that again and with his dad and so called uncle still out there, he's not safe till they’re behind bars.”<br/>“Jack, have you thought this through? Taking care of a child is a huge responsibility and he's been through so much. He’s severely traumatized! It’s going to be immensely hard, on both of you.” <br/>“Matty, I know what it’s like to work through trauma. The things I’ve seen and done during my time in Delta and CIA are enough to give anyone PTSD! No one should have to see and do stuff like I did. I ain't too proud of that but it could be an advantage of me helping the kid. I don’t want to risk that he's going to be shoved from home to home because nobody can handle an odd nightmare or flashback he may have or something. He needs someone who’s been there, who doesn’t make him feel bad about it. Please, Matty!” <br/>Matty takes a deep breath. “Fine.” She smiles. Deep inside, she knows she shouldn't be too surprised. Jack has gotten attached to the kid and he’s gonna protect him by all means.<br/>“Thank you, thank you! You won't regret it.” <br/>“I better not! Seems like I have some calls to make now.” <br/>Jack feels like a heavy weight has been lifted from his shoulders and he smiles. “What are we gonna do about James and Murdoc?”<br/>“We’re gonna get them and shut down their whole operation. From what Jill has unearthed, Murdoc has committed a long list of horrible crimes, all under different aliases and all with this James MacGyver by his side. Once we get them they’re gonna be locked up in maximum security for the rest of their lives.” <br/>“Sounds good, but how’re we gonna find them?” <br/>“Jill is running that car's licence plate through all cameras in the US and Russ, Desi and Sam are looking for any clues they could have left behind at the blast site, but don’t worry, Jack, well get them!” <br/>“I want to help. I need to help get them for Mac’s sake!” <br/>“Jack, your best help for Mac is being there for him when he wakes up. Besides, they can’t get to him here in Phoenix medical and Mac's gonna be scared and frightened when he wakes up. He’ll need a familiar and friendly face when he comes around. He will need you there.” <br/>“Yeah, you’re right. Just tell Russ when he does find that lowlife called James to kick him where it hurts,” Jack says as he heads out of the room to go back to Mac.<br/>Matty smiles after him. She’s never thought she’d see she the day when Jack Dalton goes all soft and fatherly over a child, but it was nice to see and she was going to do everything in her power to let Jack have his kid.</p>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. were am i (part 1)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hi guys </p><p>sorry its took so long to get this chapter out for you but it is a long one and coming in two parts. thier will be some supises in future chapters witch we both hope you will enjoy as much as we are</p><p>teddythecat is very kindly helping me with this story.</p><p>updates for this book are slow at the moment due to my helth is decling and wrighting is a stuggle at the moment but with teddythecats help its coming toghter but please bear with us both :) </p><p>Warning: mentions of death, but no actual death</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mac began to feel pain in his body. He also realised that he was laying on something soft. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at the hospital ceiling. He slowly moved his head and saw the machines; then his gaze fell on Jack. Why was Jack here? Where were his dad and Murdoc and why was he in a hospital?<br/>
“Hey buddy, nice to have you with us again,” Jack smiled as he saw Mac’s eyes sluggishly open.<br/>
Mac just blinked at him, not knowing what was going on and he didn't like the feeling of uncertainty at all. The last time he remembered, Jack was trying to give him to Murdoc, wasn't he? But in that case, what had happened? Mac knew he had to get out of here at once. He was not going back to his dad ever.<br/>
His dad!<br/>
A surge of fear raced through him and gripped his heart in an icy clench. He had gotten himself into a hospital! Again!<br/>
His vision swam as he remembered that fateful day a good year ago, when Donnie, the school’s biggest bully, had once again tripped him in mid walk. Unlike all the other times, the bulky and much older youth had also given him a hard shove from behind this time and Mac would have landed flat on his face, if he hadn’t broken his fall with his hands. There was an audible crack and a blinding pain in his right wrist and from one moment to the other, Mac was on the ground, dizzy, shaking and convulsively swallowing against bouts of nausea. Donnie and his gang were standing in a circle around him and roaring with laughter, while Mac bit his lip until he tasted blood. He wouldn’t, under any circumstances, let them see tears.<br/>
The next few hours were a mere blur. He remembered the school’s nurse popping up from nowhere and deciding that he needed an X-ray. He remembered the car-ride to the hospital and vomiting into a plastic bag on the way there. He remembered being cared for and fussed over by friendly nurses and doctors. That had been nice. Besides, after they’d put his wrist into a fancy blue cast - he’d even been allowed to choose the color - he felt a lot better. The sharp pain had turned into a light throb that he could easily deal with. He’d had much worse after all.<br/>
It was, of course, too good to last.<br/>
“Do you have the slightest idea how much this will cost me?” His father’s angry voice reverberated in his ears. He remembered all too well how James picked him up from the ER and roughly threw him into the car, as soon as they were out of sight of the hospital staff. “But you don’t care, do you? Waste your old man’s money, why not? You weren’t the one who worked for it, but that’s got to stop now.”<br/>
“I’m sorry, dad,” he whimpered while he cowered in the back seat of the Jeep and cradled the cast with his good arm, “I fell, it wasn’t my fault. Someone tripped me.”<br/>
“That’s because you’re a good-for-nothing klutz,” James raged. Mac bit his already bloody and swollen lip again. He knew that crying would set his father off even more. He therefore sat there, staring at his knees for the rest of the ride, and stoically let his father’s insults wash over him.<br/>
When Mac got up the next morning and went to get himself some breakfast, the fridge and the cupboard with the groceries were bolted shut and locked.<br/>
“Hungry?”<br/>
Mac jumped at the unexpected voice and swirled around. His father was standing in the doorway, casually leaning against the doorframe and smirking maliciously. Mac cringed against his will.<br/>
‘Well, well, well, look who’s still thinking he deserves to eat my food after that stupid stunt you pulled yesterday?’<br/>
Mac swallowed and said nothing.<br/>
He went to school hungry that day.<br/>
When he came back after school, the lock of the front door had been changed and his meager personal belongings were lying scattered in the front yard...</p><p>“Mac!” Jack watched the kid with concern. His eyes were open, but he had kind of zoned out and whatever he was going through didn’t seem to be pleasant. Jack called his name again and gently touched his shoulder. “Hey kiddo, you with me?”<br/>
Mac jumped. Literally. Jack quickly withdrew his hand. Mac looked shaky and downright terrified, but at least his eyes were clear now. Jack breathed a small sigh of relief. He’d already feared that his head injury might be worse than the doctors thought. But regarding the way the kid had jerked back into reality, it looked much more like a flashback to Jack. His heart broke for him.<br/>
“Easy, Mac, you’re safe now. They're not gonna hurt you ever again, okay? I’ll make sure of that, you hear me?” Jack didn’t know how much of his soothing got through to Mac, but he seemed to relax gradually, so he kept it up. Mac stared at him the whole time with wide-open eyes. It looked like his brain was running a mile a minute, until he apparently came to a conclusion. Mac shifted in his bed and tried to get up but with a grimace he sank back.<br/>
“Whoa, Mac, where do you think you are going?” asked Jack gently. “What is it you need?”<br/>
“Bathroom,” he replied.<br/>
“Hang on, I’ll get you a bedpan,” said Jack.<br/>
“Jack?” Mac’s voice sounded so miserable that Jack stopped dead in his tracks. “Is that what I think it is?”<br/>
“Well, if you think that it’s a useful tool to help you relieve yourself without dragging your battered body to the bathroom, you’re right.” Jack smiled brightly, but he’d obviously said the wrong thing. The blond boy looked appalled and embarrassed at the mere idea.<br/>
“I don’t need to go that bad,” he mumbled and settled back, but his good leg kept twitching. Jack knew it was urgent.<br/>
“Mac? If I helped you, do you think you could make it to the bathroom without falling?”<br/>
Mac nodded eagerly. Jack sighed and, against his better judgement, helped the kid up. Mac winced and gritted his teeth, but didn’t make a sound. Jack hated to cause him more pain, but he knew it was for the better. The teenager would rather have dropped dead on the spot than used one of those hideous things. He could relate, so he maneuvered him, along with his IV-pole, to the small bathroom and deposited him on the toilet.<br/>
“Take care of business, okay? Then I can help you freshen up a bit. They cleaned away most of that dust and grime, before they put you to bed, but washing yourself a bit sounds good, doesn’t it,” Jack rambled, but the horrified look on Mac’s face stopped him. “You okay, kid?” he asked.<br/>
“Jack, could you… leave? Please? I want to be alone for… this,” Mac begged. Jack shook his head.<br/>
“Not gonna happen. You’re not even supposed to be out of bed yet. You could fall,” he reasoned, but the blond boy in front of him had blushed so violently, you could have fried an egg on his face. Jack’s determination melted.<br/>
“Okay, you’ve won. Yell when you're finished, will ya? I’ll help ya back to bed. Don’t try to walk on your own, okay? I’ll be right back.”<br/>
Mac looked at his feet and nodded. After hesitantly closing the door behind him, Jack dashed to the bathroom in the hall to take care of his own body’s needs and maybe beg for some coffee at the nurse’s office.</p><p>When Jack had thankfully closed the door behind him, Mac leaned his forehead in his cupped hands. He was scared and he felt guilty. Who was going to pay for all this? His dad had kicked him out after he’d gotten an X-Ray and a cast, but this? He had received a much larger cast on his leg, medications, a state-of-the-art hospital bed and a room for himself, and that was only the stuff he knew about. He didn’t remember anything between getting knocked out in the basement and waking up in this room. How had he gotten here? Would they send the invoice to his father? He didn’t know, but he couldn’t take any risks. Would Jack pay for it? Mac had now idea how rich Jack was, but he’d recently bought a farm and probably didn’t have any money to waste; especially not after all the clothes and stuff he’d already spent on Mac.<br/>
No matter what, he had to get out of here now, before he caused any more costs. He couldn’t help what had been done to him while he was out, but now that he was awake, he had to go.<br/>
He looked around the tiny bathroom and systematically scanned it for a possible escape route. There was no window, but in the wall behind him, he found an air vent. It looked large enough for him to climb through, so this was his way out. He would crawl along the labyrinth of shafts until he reached some place from where he could leave the building and then he’d be gone.<br/>
The hard part would be to get there with his leg in a cast. He got up and estimated the height. Standing on the toilet, he should be able to reach the opening. Wincing, he pulled the IV out of his arm. Gripping the IV-pole with both hands to keep his weight off the broken leg, he started to climb the toilet. He’d already pushed himself all the way up, when the pole’s wheels rolled away and Mac crashed hard onto the tiled floor with a grunt. The breath got knocked out of his chest. He couldn't do more than lie there on the cold floor and gasp for air in painful wheezes. This time, he let the tears fall. He’d messed up again. His dad had been right to kick him out. He was a good-for-nothing, worthless klutz after all. Not to mention stupid, because if he wasn’t, it wouldn’t have taken him so long to see it.</p><p>When Jack came back to Mac’s room, he was holding a steaming mug of hot brew. He enjoyed the scent of real coffee, instead of the dishwater the vending machine called coffee. ‘If the nurses can run on this, I can,’ he was thinking when he heard ominous noises from the bathroom, followed by an almighty crash and metal clanging. “MAC!” he screamed and dropped his coffee.<br/>
With two large strides he reached the bathroom door and pushed it open, but it wouldn’t open all the way. When the door was stopped by something lying on the floor, Jack heard a small whimper. Jack heard himself cry for help, while he very gently pushed the door open far enough for him to slip through. What he saw made his heart stutter.<br/>
Mac was lying on his back on the floor, limbs sprawled, his face a grimace of pain and tears streaming freely from his eyes. His arm looked like the IV had been pulled out roughly and the pole had fallen over on top of Mac’s slim frame. Jack dropped to his knees and grabbed Mac’s hand. “Aw kiddo, what the hell happened to you? Lie still, help is on the way.”<br/>
When the medical personnel arrived, Jack squeezed himself into a corner to give them room to work. He was ready to cry from guilt and shame. How could he have let the boy out of his sight in this condition? He watched in silent horror as Mac was carefully extricated from the small room and rushed away on a gurney for more checks and examinations.</p>
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<a name="section0013"><h2>13. were am i (part 2)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>very sorry for the long waight ive been in hospital and been put on bedrest so been on so much meds and stuff not feeling great to wright all the time my health is still very bad so please be patient for chapters and thank you for all those who are. a big thank you to teddythecat whos helping co wright this as well she is doing an amazing job.</p><p>i cant promise you fast updates but thier will be updates how ever slow and hope you all enjoy the chapter :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jack was having a dejà vu. Once again he was sitting in a chair next to Mac’s hospital bed and watched over the kid’s sleep. He’d damaged even more ribs than before, which made breathing difficult. His IV was back in his arm, feeding him pain meds to ease his painful breathing. He had an oxygen mask on his face and his broken leg was sporting a new cast. Mac looked distressed, even in his sleep. One of Jack’s hands held Mac’s hand and the other one stroked his hair, while he mumbled soothing nonsense. It didn’t seem to do much for the boy, but at least it gave Jack the feeling of doing something.</p><p>If he had been feeling guilty the last time he’d sat here, it was nothing compared to now. How could he have let that happen? He hadn’t even been away for two minutes and the kid had managed to fall so bad that he was lucky he didn’t break his neck. Jack still didn’t know what had happened. Mac had hardly said a word since his fall and the more Jack thought about it, the more convinced he was that it hadn’t been a simple collapse. Something was going on with him and Jack wouldn’t take his eyes off him until he knew what was bothering him.</p><p>A soft moan from Mac announced his imminent return to wakefulness. </p><p>“Hey buddy, how’re you feeling?” </p><p>Mac slowly blinked his eyes open and looked around in confusion. “Jack?” he asked hoarsely.</p><p>“Yeah, kiddo, I’m here. Are you comfortable? How’s the pain?”</p><p>“‘m okay,” Mac croaked and Jack helped him drink a few sips of water.</p><p>“Well, we both know that you’re not okay. Listen, you have to tell me if you need more pain meds. We want you to be as comfortable as possible, you know?”</p><p>“I don’t need anything,” Mac answered weakly, but his strained face said otherwise. “I just wanna get out of here.”</p><p>“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold ya horses, hoss! You've just booked yourself the ticket for this bed for a while longer, and this time, we’ll make sure that you stay put until you’re cleared by the good doctor.”</p><p>By way of a reply, Mac turned his face away from Jack and failed to suppress a sob. It cut into Jack’s heart like a knife.</p><p>“Hey, hey, kid, easy! Whatever it is, we’ll figure it out, okay? I got ya. You’re perfectly safe here. These nice people here are taking good care of you. And so am I. The only thing you have to do right now is get better, okay?” Jack got up from his chair and adjusted the dosage of Mac’s medication the way the nurse had shown him earlier. Mac watched silently, before he let his eyes fall closed again.</p><p> </p><p>Mac was desperate and his head was swirling. What was he gonna do now? His stupidity and clumsiness had made everything so much worse. He’d missed his chance to get out of here. Now, he was in for an even longer stay and more meds… and more costs. How could he ever pay Jack back? But he’d rather work on Jack’s farm for the rest of his life to cover it, but let his father pay. James would probably refuse to pay another cent for him anyway. For all he cared, Mac was lying dead under the debris of the collapsed house. </p><p>He let Jack’s comforting mumbling wash over him while he tried to fight back tears. The sharp pain in his ribcage that had assaulted him with every breath was now a distant throbbing, but somehow, that made him feel even more miserable. He’d screwed up royally, so he deserved to be in pain, didn’t he? And now he was being weak, too. Try as he might, he couldn’t get the occasional hiccupping sobs that were escaping him under control. They were agony on his ribs despite the painkillers, and one particularly bad one left him moaning in pain.</p><p>Mac felt Jack’s fingers card through his hair and he couldn’t help leaning towards the touch. “Easy, kiddo,” he heard him murmur, “try to relax, okay? You’re gonna be fine. You just need plenty of rest and no more stunts like that one in the bathroom. All you have to do now is healing up and we’ll take care of everything else, how does that sound?”</p><p>Right now, Mac didn’t care if he deserved Jack’s comfort or not. It felt just too good and he was way too exhausted to fight it. He had no idea for how long he’d be staying here and what would happen to him afterwards, but whatever it was going to be, he’d feel much better facing it after some decent sleep. With that thought he let himself drift off.</p><p> </p><p>The next morning, Jack was awoken by a collection of aches in his neck and back. He raised his head from Mac’s mattress and winced when the movement caused several of his joints to crack audibly. His body surely didn’t appreciate sleeping slumped forward in a hospital chair. He looked around and what he saw made his heart ache and swell at the same time. Mac was still fast asleep, the tension, finally, gone from his face and body and he was hugging Jack’s right hand to his chest. Jack felt a lump in his throat and swallowed.</p><p>Although Jack did his best not to wake the sleeping child, Mac obviously sensed that he had stirred and woke with a start.</p><p>“Good morning,” Jack greeted him softly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up.”</p><p>“Jack?” Mac asked confused, “you’ve been here all night?”</p><p>“Looks like you wouldn’t let me go anywhere,” Jack said with a smile when he gestured toward his hand that Mac was still clutching. Mac jumped and let go of it as if it had burned him.</p><p>“S-sorry,” he stammered, “I d-didn’t mean to--”</p><p>“Hey, hey, buddy, it’s okay. You had finally calmed down enough to sleep. That’s great. And I caught a couple of Z’s as well, so don’t worry about it.” Jack decided wisely not to let Mac know how bad his body was complaining about it.</p><p>“How long do I have to stay here?” Mac asked suddenly. Jack was a little taken aback.</p><p>“What? Don’t you like the service around here? Okay, I admit, it’s not the Ritz, but it’s not some public hospital either. I can tell you it could be much worse than this.” Jack winked at him, but Mac just dropped his gaze sadly. “Hey, what’s bothering you, huh? I’ll keep you company as much as I can, okay? And you’re in the most capable hands here. Just… please, promise me that you won’t try to get up on your own. You're not supposed to put strain on your injuries for a while, okay?”</p><p>“Can I go to the bathroom?”</p><p>“Not for a few days, I’m really sorry. You have a-- uhm-- catheter in now,” Jack explained awkwardly and Mac immediately blushed crimson. “Sorry,” Jack added somewhat lamely. When he saw Mac fight tears again, he grabbed his hand and squeezed it encouragingly. “Hey Mac, I know you’re used to taking care of yourself and you were doing great, but shouldn’t have to. Why not take a break and let these nice people spoil you for a bit, huh?” </p><p>Jack knew he was doing a poor job cheering Mac up, but he’d hoped that he’d at least draw a trace of a smile out of him. Instead, tears welled up in his eyes and somehow he managed to look even more miserable than before. Jack could barely resist the urge to wrap him into a bear hug, but he knew that it would hurt him more. He sighed and squeezed Mac’s hand again. </p><p>“Listen, whatever it is that gets you all worked up, we’re gonna figure it out, okay?” <br/>Mac swallowed hard and breathed as slowly and deeply as his battered chest allowed to get some composure back. The medication they had him on helped with the pain, but certainly not with getting a grip on himself. Thinking clearly was hard and his emotions were all over the place. He suddenly felt a wave of anger rise inside him. “I'm not going back, you can't make me go back to them. I'd rather die than go back to them!” he blurted out harshly. It broke Jack's heart to hear Mac talk like that.</p><p>“Mac, I can promise you that you will never have to go back,” said Jack, rubbing Mac’s hand with his thumb. </p><p>“How can I trust you? You were willing to give me to him at that diner,” snapped Mac, tears threatening to overflow, his heart rate monitor starting to beep as his pain started to rise because of stress and moving.</p><p>“Mac, relax before you do yourself more harm and have to stay here even longer,” said Jack, trying to make a joke.</p><p>“I'll be good,” assured Mac hastily, but his eyes widened in fear.</p><p>“Hey, I was joking. Nothing bad’s going to happen to you, Mac, not while I'm here and not ever if I can help it.” </p><p>“Why should I believe you?” </p><p>“Mac, I understand what it must have looked like to you and I can’t tell you enough how sorry I am! If you calm down for a minute and listen, I'll explain about the diner, but let's get you all settled and comfy first, okay?” </p><p>Jack watched patiently as conflicting emotions flickered over Mac’s face. Finally, he nods and lets Jack raise the head of his bed.</p><p>“You good?” Jack asked. Mac nodded silently, but he still eyed Jack suspiciously. Jack sat back down and took Mac’s hand again.</p><p>“Let me tell you a bit more about what I used to do for a living before I retired. After I left the army, I was CSI for a while and one thing I learned there, was that sometimes you have to convince bad guys that you’re on their side. That’s what I was doing at the diner, but I had no way of telling you. I was going to explain everything to you after that creep left but then you went to the bathroom and never came back. I would never have handed you over to anyone, I swear! Well, unless you felt 100% safe with them and we knew them well and you were happy, of course. As soon as you left, I got in contact with an old friend of mine and pulled some strings to get help finding you, buddy.” </p><p>Jack had barely taken a breath during his speech and now, he had to take a short break to catch his breath. Mac didn’t say anything. He just looked at Jack with a mix of confusion, exhaustion, disbelief, betrayal and despair in his blue eyes. Thankfully, there was also a hint of hope. Jack’s heart constricted and he swallowed, before he continued.</p><p>“James and that creep weren’t supposed to get their hands on you ever again, but James is your father and therefore, there was only so much I could do. Believe me, I wanted nothing more than to give them a couple of good punches, scoop you up and take you home, but no matter how horrible that sounds, I had no right to do that. I had to pretend that I was agreeing to their terms and I had to sell it. I feared that it would scare you, but I didn’t expect you to bolt. I’m so, so sorry, kid!”</p><p>At this, Mac’s eyes were brimming with tears again. Jack gripped his hand more tightly and massaged his knuckles with his thumb. Mac relaxed a fraction. “I can’t even wrap my mind around what you must have been through, but that’s over now. Your father and that Murdoc guy are going to jail for a long time. They can’t hurt you anymore, I promise!”</p><p>Mac still didn’t reply, but Jack could see in his face that he was doing some hard thinking. He seemed to have some trouble wrapping his mind around it, but according to his expressions, he was getting there eventually. Jack decided to give him some space and got up to stretch his legs in the hallways for a few minutes.</p><p> </p><p>When Jack came back to Mac’s room, a nurse was just about to serve dinner. Jack took the tray and reentered the room - and almost dropped Mac’s dinner.</p><p>“Stop that! What in hell do you think you are doing?” he gasped, horrified. Mac jumped and ripped the  adhesive tape from his IV cannula with a jerk. Jack quickly placed Mac’s dinner tray on the bedside table and grabbed Mac’s hand just in time to keep him from removing the cannula from the back of his hand. “Will you leave that alone? What has gotten into you?”</p><p>“I’m fine. I don’t need this. Can I go now?” </p><p>“Go? Where?”</p><p>“Uh, I was hoping you might let me stay in your shed? I won’t make any trouble, I swear,” Mac pleaded. Jack couldn’t help but gape at the teen in shock. He needed a moment to remember how to work his voice.</p><p>“Whoa, whoa, whoa, where’s this coming from? You sure ain’t leaving this room before the doctors clear you and after your latest stunt you might as well get comfortable in that bed for a bit longer. And what’s that with the shed? You’re not sleeping in it anymore,” Jack blurted out exasperatedly. </p><p>“I-- I kinda hoped-- maybe-- maybe you’d let me stay, even when I can’t really work with that leg, but I understand.” Mac’s voice wavered a bit and he hung his head.<br/>Jack swallowed hard. “What in blazes are you talking about? Of course I’ll let you stay, but you have to stay here and recover some more first. And you don’t have to live in the shed and you most definitely don’t have to work for your stay! What makes you think that?” The ex-CSI took a deep breath and shook his head in disbelief.<br/>Mac reluctantly looked up, a hint of hope blossoming in his eyes for a second, before he dropped his gaze again. “I can’t stay here any longer.”</p><p>Jack frowned. “I can’t shake the feeling that I’m missing something here. Why do you think that you can’t stay? You’re perfectly safe here, I promise! What are you trying to run from?”</p><p>Mac avoided Jack’s gaze and mumbled something to his knees that Jack really hoped that he’d misheard. “Did you just say ‘hospital bill’? Is that what you’re worried about?”</p><p>Mac bit his lip and nodded hesitantly. “My dad isn’t gonna pay anything for me. Please don’t make me stay here and no more meds, please!”</p><p>Jack gasped as he felt his heart seize. “Aww kiddo, don’t you worry about that! First of all, this isn’t the kind of place that sends bills to their patients. And even if they did, if you need something, you’ll get it, you hear me?”</p><p>“B-but I’m n-not worth it,” Mac choked out. Jack had to take a couple of calming breaths to keep himself from exploding. Instead, he shifted from the visitor’s chair to the edge of Mac’s mattress and  pulled him into a gentle embrace. </p><p>“That’s what HE told you? Aww buddy, that’s a load of bulls-- uhm, garbage! You’re worth everything, you hear me?”</p><p>“When I broke my arm at school, my dad was so angry about the bill that he kicked me out the next day,” Mac mumbled into Jack’s shirt. Jack barely managed to suppress a growl of rage and hugged Mac tighter to his chest instead. He felt the boy shaking in his arms while he rubbed circles on his back and rocked him gently back and forth, whispering reassurances in his ear. They stayed like this until Mac’s shaking subsided and his breathing evened out.</p><p> </p><p>When Mac woke up the next time, it was to a nurse taking his temperature in his ear. He was surprised to find himself lying flat in the bed. Hadn’t he fallen asleep in Jack’s arms? He felt slightly disoriented, but a lot better. The nurse smiled at him. “Good morning, sunshine! How are you feeling?”</p><p>“Much better, thank you,” he replied shyly. The next thing he noticed was a rather obnoxious snoring to his right and he wondered how he’d been able to sleep through that. When he looked over, he saw Jack sprawled on his back, his mouth wide open, noisily sleeping on a folding cot that had obviously been brought in for him during the night. Mac couldn’t remember when he’d last slept so tight. The nurse winked at Mac mischievously and walked over to Jack. As soon as she touched his ear with the thermometer, he jerked awake with a grunt, his limbs flailing, and almost fell off the narrow cot. The nurse laughed and even Mac ventured a shy grin. </p><p>“Wrong bed,” he complained grumpily, “I’m not the patient here. Can’t a guy sleep in peace in this place?”</p><p>Arms akimbo, the nurse gave him a scolding glare. “Speaking of peace, your snoring was waking the dead!”</p><p>“Jack don’t snore,” Jack protested indignantly. “Mac, back me up there, I don’t snore!”</p><p>Mac shifted uncomfortably. “Uhm… well…”</p><p>The nurse saved Mac from an answer by asking “Who wants breakfast?” loudly and therewith totally distracting Jack and Mac. </p><p>“I’m starving!” came in unison from both of them.</p><p> </p><p>After their breakfast, Jack helped Mac brush his teeth over a bowl in bed. This would have to be their routine for the next few days, until the doctor allowed Mac to leave the bed again. Mac had grudgingly promised to follow orders from now on and to refrain from any further attempts to leave Medical early. Jack had managed to convince him that staying and doing everything necessary to recover was his quickest way out.</p><p>“What is this place anyway?” Mac wanted to know. “This is not a normal hospital. So where am I?”</p><p>“I assure you that you’re in the best medical place around, but it's also kinda top secret, so I can't tell you where exactly we are, or Matty will eat me alive.” <br/>“Is that so Jack?” </p><p>Jack nearly jumped a foot in the air, as he hadn’t heard Matty come in, and Mac tried to suppress a smile. </p><p>“Hey sweetie, it's nice to see you awake! Are you feeling better?”</p><p>“Yes, Ma’am, thank you,” Mac replied timidly.</p><p>“Don't you ever call me Ma’am again, you hear me? My name’s Matty,” she scolded, but her gentle smile took all the heat out of it.</p><p>“Yes, M--Matty.”</p><p>Matty nodded appreciatively and turned to Jack. “Jack, what we talked about could go into motion, if Mac wants it too.“</p><p>“I haven’t talked to him about that yet, but we’re getting there.” </p><p>“OK, I'll leave you two alone, but Mac, if Jack gets too much for you, his kryptonite is Cairo.” She stage-whispered the last part and Jack looked scandalized.</p><p>“Matty!” he barked at her retreating back, but she just winked at Mac and closed the door. </p><p>“Why Cairo?” </p><p>“We don’t talk about Cairo,” said Jack pointedly, emphasizing every word.</p><p>Mac just nodded. He felt that there was a story behind this that Jack wasn’t ready to share. It was more than just top secret information. He hastily changed the topic. “I'm sorry I tried to run from the bathroom.” </p><p>“That’s alright, buddy. You were just scared, I understand that. You’ve been through so much, so let's put that in the past and start afresh, what do you say?” He smiled and wiggled his eyebrows in his unique way, before he went on. “A few of my new buddies here are going to make sure your old man and his friend will be caught and put into a dark hole to never see the light of day again.” </p><p>Mac looked at Jack in disbelief. he could hardly believe that someone was doing that for him. Then, he remembered something.</p><p>“What did that Matty lady mean when she asked if you talked to me about putting something into motion?” </p><p>“Well... If you will let me, I'd like to offer you a permanent home. I mean a real home, where you can feel safe and cared for and where you can just be a kid.” Mac just stared at Jack open-mouthed, completely speechless. Jack just kept talking and what he said next, made Mac pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. “If that works for you, I’m planning to adopt you later. Only if you want, of course, the decision is yours. It’s just that it would mean that your father would no longer be your father, in a legal way.”</p><p>Mac let the words sink in and a hitherto unknown feeling of hope and pure joy blossomed inside him. Could it be real? How often had he secretly wished that his father was someone else, someone nice. Someone who cared about him. He stared at Jack and there was nothing but honesty in his eyes. “R-- Really?” he stuttered, a little breathless.</p><p>“Yeah, hoss, really. You can’t keep living on the streets. You need a real roof over your head, food, clothes, a real bed and -- and a home. You should be going to school regularly. I know that you love to learn. I’d just love to make sure that you have everything you need, Mac. You deserve to be happy.” </p><p>At the last sentence, Mac’s eyes filled with tears. Nobody had ever told him that he deserved to be happy. He couldn’t really wrap his mind around that.</p><p>“You want me to live with you, but-- but what if I do something wrong? What if I make you angry? I’ve always been safest on my own, so no one can hurt me or get rid of me when they don’t want me anymore.” </p><p>Jack swallowed against a lump in his throat. “Mac, I promise you that I will never ever do that to you. What your dad did was so wrong that I have no words for it. It’s absolutely normal for kids to rebel against their parents every now and then, but even when their parents get angry, they'll never stop loving their kids!” A tear ran down Mac’s cheek and Jack pulled him into an embrace. He ran his fingers through the blond hair and Mac lay his head against Jack’s shoulder. “You know what? As a kid, it's literally your job to make mistakes and learn from them. That’s not a reason to be thrown out! You might get grounded for a day or two maybe, in case you really mess up badly, but if that happens, we’ll talk about it first. I will never hurt you or throw you out Mac, I promise you that.”</p><p>Mac wriggled out of Jack’s hug to look him in the eyes. Studying him intendly, he could tell Jack was telling the truth.</p><p>“OK.” </p><p>“You mean it?” Jack could hardly believe that the kid had actually said yes.</p><p>“Yes, but...”</p><p>Jack looked at Mac, now worried again.</p><p>“May I keep my shed?” he asked quietly. He wasn't ready to let go of his safety net yet.</p><p>“OK, but only if you let me repair it to make it safe for you. I don’t want the roof falling on your head.” </p><p>“Deal!”</p>
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<a name="section0014"><h2>14. a day of surpises</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i cant believe thier is only one more chapter to go after this thank you to everyone whos enjoying this and dont worry this is not the end thier are so meny idears still left for this thats they will be turned in to little spin offs for this book :) witch i hope you will enjoy just as much</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jack was incredibly happy that Mac had agreed and once the kid was asleep, Jack had slipped off to go speak with Matty about the arrangements that needed to be made.</p><p>In total, Mac spent two weeks in medical. It wasn’t that Mac’s injuries weren't healing nicely, but it was decided that he should start his PT in the Phoenix facility. This had the added bonus that it gave Jack time to put his surprise into action and have everything ready for Mac when he came home. When the big day finally came, Jack was so excited that he felt like a kid in a candy shop.</p><p>Mac still wasn't keen on Jack having to help him with a lot of things, as he liked to be independent, but even he had to admit that he was a little bit excited to be leaving the hospital.</p><p>He looked out of the window and watched the farm come into view. He was amazed at how different it looked.</p><p>“Welcome home, Mac!” Jack grinned, immensely proud.</p><p>“How?” Mac was well and truly impressed.</p><p>“Well, Matty pulled some strings and got the main house fixed up. Don’t worry, when you're all mended and feeling better - and that means cleared by the doc - then you and I can work on fixing the rest of this place,” Jack suggested and smiled.</p><p> </p><p>Once they pulled up out front, Jack helped Mac out of the truck. Maddie came running down the steps, barking excitedly. She was followed closely by one of Matty’s and Jack’s old friends who were still on Matty’s payroll.</p><p>“Jack, good to see you’re home!” He greeted them with a round of fist bumps.</p><p>“It's nice to be home. Thanks so much for looking after the place and Maddie here. I hope she wasn't too much trouble.”</p><p>“Less trouble than you, old man!” He smirked and Jack playfully mimicked strangling him with curled fingers, which Adam deliberately ignored. He nodded at the teen instead. “And I'm guessing this is Mac?”</p><p>“Yep this is Mac. Mac, this is-- uhm, used to be* a friend of mine, Adam. Old man, I ask you...” Jack shook his head, but gave Mac a wink to indicate that their banter was entirely good-natured.</p><p>“Hi,” said Mac shyly.</p><p>“I'm going to show Mac around and get him settled. Then you can tell me what's been going on over here, okay?” Jack suggested.</p><p>“Sounds good.”</p><p> </p><p>Maddie followed Jack and Mac around, as Jack showed Mac the house. Mac’s jaw dropped in every room a little more. It was just amazing.</p><p>“I’ve saved the best for last,” the man announced.</p><p>Jack had been looking forward to this for weeks. He grinned broadly, as he opened the last door and climbed a couple of steps that led to a massive round, turret-like room. “This is your room. I hope you like it. If you want anything changed, we can do so and once you're feeling better, we can buy some more accessories for it. I wasn’t too sure what you’d like, so you better pick them yourself. And that door there leads to your own bathroom,” Jack rambled. He was nervous about Mac’s reaction.</p><p>Mac looked around in wonder. The room was painted in a pale shade of green. Wherever Mac looked, he found little sciency things, either for decoration or for him to use. Or both. He saw a lampshade that showed the solar system, which he immediately liked. But he was absolutely ecstatic, when he spotted the collection of beakers, which seemed to glow in different colors, sitting on the shelf. When he looked at the spacious and comfortable-looking bed, there was a big blue octopus soft toy. It was clear to him that Jack had given every item in the room a great deal of thought.</p><p>“I thought u may need a friend,” Jack explained.</p><p>Mac looked at Jack, completely lost for words. He couldn’t believe that all this was for him. No one had ever done so much for him ever.</p><p>“Thank you,” Mac managed to get out.</p><p>“Don’t mention it. You must be spent. Why don’t you get settled and take some rest up here? Make yourself at home a bit. I need to go talk with Adam. Then we can sort out some dinner, what d’ya say?”</p><p>Mac just nodded, too overwhelmed so speak.</p><p>Maddie decided to keep Mac company, which Mac was very grateful for. When Jack went downstairs, Mac lay down on his bed with a sigh and Maddie cuddled up beside him, upside down to get her belly rubbed. Lost in thought, Mac was absently stroking the dog's fur. He knew deep down he would definitely have to prove himself, now with all this kindness and new things Jack had gotten him. He’d had to learn early in life that nothing good came without a price.</p><p> </p><p>Just as Jack was entering the living room to talk to Adam, his phone rang. It was Matty.</p><p>“We've located them! Russ, Desi and Sam are going in now with a TAC team. I’ve also sent a TAC team to the farm, just to be on the safe side, so please lock your doors! I'll keep you updated!”</p><p>“Roger that, Matty, and thank you!”</p><p> </p><p>Once the house was surrounded, Russ kicked the door open with a well-practiced, almost graceful move. He was closely followed by Sam and Desi, all guns drawn.</p><p>“James, Murdoc, I know you're in there, so show yourselves,” Russ barked. They quickly but thoroughly cleared one room after the other. It wasn't long before James and Murdoc were found, overpowered and tied up. The team breathed a collective sigh of relief.</p><p>“Is there anyone else in here?” Russ demanded.</p><p>“No,“ Murdoc replied, but everyone in the room knew that he was lying.</p><p>“Then let's get you to the car. Oh, and James, this is for you from a friend of mine,” said Russ, raised his foot and landed it hard in James' private area. James groaned and doubled up in pain.</p><p>As the two men were led away, Russ signaled the others to follow him and went to take a look upstairs, while evidence was being bagged in the downstairs rooms.</p><p>They were surprised when they opened one of the bedroom doors to see an older teenage boy looking up at them. He was absolutely terrified and raised his hands as soon as he saw their guns.</p><p>“Who are you?” Russ barked a little harsher than he had intended.</p><p>“My name’s Cassian,” the boy stammered in a small voice.</p><p>“What are you doing here?” Russ’s voice had become considerably more gentle.</p><p>“I live here.”</p><p>“You -- live here?” He gaped at the teen. </p><p>“Yeah... my dad owns the place.”</p><p>“Who’s your dad?”</p><p>“His name is Dennis Roberts.”</p><p>“And what does your dad do, Cassian?” Russ inquired.</p><p>“He's a businessman. He just got back from a business trip. He trades goods all over the world and he’s on trips a lot.”</p><p>Russ put his gun down, realizing that this kid had nothing to do with his father’s “business”. He recognized the name Dennis Roberts as an identity Murdoc had used before. Poor kid! He looked over to what the boy had been doing and saw that he had his school work out.</p><p>“What school do you go to?”</p><p>“Bellview. It’s a boarding school in Canada. I'm home for a few days, as dad had some rare time off. I normally stay at the school all year round.”</p><p>“How old are you?”</p><p>“16”</p><p>Russ stepped out of the room. “Matty, we got a problem,” he called over comms, “We've come across a 16 year old boy who claims to be Murdoc’s son, but I’m certain that he has no clue what his dad actually does for a living.”</p><p>Matty heaved a sigh. “Aw man! You'll have to bring him in and we’ll decide from here what we’re going to do.”</p><p>Matty updated Jack on what had happened and informed them they had found another child, this one thankfully unharmed, at least physically.</p><p>After the call, Jack went to find Mac, who was resting on the sofa where Jack had left him. He was still looking around the refurbished room in awe.</p><p>“Hey Mac, do you know or have you heard of a kid called Cassian?”</p><p>“Yeah, he's Murdoc’s son. I met him once. He seems nice, but his dad keeps him away at some school abroad, so he doesn’t have to put up with him.”</p><p>Jack pondered this. Cassian was apparently another poor kid whose father didn’t want them around. At least he didn’t seem to have been abused in any obvious way, but still... Jack sighed and shook his head. “Do you know what happened to his mother?” he asked.</p><p>Mac dropped his gaze. “As far as I know she’s dead,” he replied sadly. Jack swallowed and reached for Mac’s shoulder to squeeze it in comfort.</p><p>“Aww, I’m sorry to hear that!” </p><p>“What will happen to him now?” Mac asked. “Will he have to go back to that school?”</p><p>“Don’t think so. That will be for Matty to sort out, I guess. Does he want to go back there?”</p><p>“I don’t think so. He was really excited that he was allowed to be with his dad for the first time in years and he begged and pleaded to come home more often. He said that he was being bullied at school, because his father didn’t want him around.” Mac’s voice broke and he bit his lip.</p><p>“That one hit close to home, huh?” Jack asked sympathetically. Mac didn’t trust his voice and just nodded. “Hey, hoss,” Jack went on, “how would you feel if I offered him to live with us, too, if he wants? Provided that it’s okay with Matty. And with you, of course.”</p><p>“You mean… like my brother?” Mac asked, his voice still wavering.</p><p>“Yeah, would you like that?”</p><p>“We’d be like… a family.” Mac beamed and so did Jack.</p><p>“Only if you want,” Jack assured him.</p><p>Mac looked at him questioningly. He still wasn’t used to people asking if he was alright with something. Normally, decisions were made for him and he had to put up with them.</p><p>“What would happen to him if we didn’t?”</p><p>“Well, he can’t stay at the boarding school when his father goes to jail, so he would probably end up in a home or in foster care.”</p><p>“No! I want him to live with us. He is nice, he gave me chocolate once and it was great. I’d never had any before. My dad didn’t allow it, because he said I didn’t deserve sweets. Cassian gave me some anyway and it was a secret between me and him-- oops!” Mac rambled and then realized he had just given the secret away. He looked scared and Jack’s heart broke all over again.</p><p>“Aw kiddo, don’t worry about that! I certainly won’t hold it against you, but I won’t tell Cassian, if it makes you feel better, okay?” Jack was shocked at what Mac had told him. What kid didn’t have chocolate in their life? Jack made a mental note to always have some at home.</p><p> </p><p>Later that day, Jack had a long talk with Matty, where he told her that he would like to take in Cassian as well and that Mac was happy with the idea. Matty scolded him for picking up every stray he stumbled upon, but Jack could hear the fond smile in her voice. He’d wanted a family of his own all his life, but his work had always gotten in the way. This just felt like the right thing to do now. Matty promised him to get the ball rolling and hopefully have Cassian be brought over later that day by a fellow agent, probably Sam or Desi.</p><p>Once the call ended, Jack went back to Mac, sat down beside him and told him that Cassian would hopefully be there later. Mac smiled contently and Jack turned on the TV.</p><p>Who would have thought that buying a farm would amount to him adopting two kids and becoming a dad? He couldn’t wait to tell his Mama.</p>
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<a name="section0015"><h2>15. epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>thank you to all our readers who have stuck with us while we wright this and i no this is short and sweet but this is not the end we have meny more storys for this universe so please look out for them. i cant believe ive finshed a story im so happy this is a big acviment for me and ive got teddythecat to thank for it. </p><p>also if you want to see somthing in this universe please feel free to let us no allways open to idears :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*2 months later*</p><p>Both Cassian and Mac had settled in nicely to live on the farm and into their new school. Mac had even made two new friends: Bozer and his friend Riley.<br/>They had saved Mac from the school bully Donny as he tried to fit Mac into Mac’s locker. Cassian had made the school's football team and Mac had won the school science fair, so Jack couldn't have been prouder of his two boys.</p><p>It didn’t take long for the adoption to come through. With Matty pulling some strings, it took just under a month, so now Mac was officially named Angus MacGyver Dalton, using MacGyver as his middle name. That way, he could still go by Mac, but he didn’t want to lose Angus, because it was what his mum had called him. </p><p>Cassian became Cassian Jack Dalton. He didn’t have a middle name and to show how grateful he was to Jack, he took Jack's name, which may have brought a tear or two to Jack's eyes and a lot of hugging of both his boys.</p><p>The family couldn’t have been happier, when it was announced that Murdoc and James had been sent to a black site and would never see the light of day again. Jack decided to celebrate the occasion with a big old barbeque. He invited everyone who had helped at Phoenix, Bozer and Riley with their families and some of Cassian's friends and remaining family came over as well.</p><p>As Mac was carrying the plates from the house to the yard, he stopped, looked around at everyone and smiled. Who knew that the day when Jack bought the farm, his life was going to change for the better? Yes, Mac still kept worrying that he'd somehow upset Jack and Jack would hate him for it, but with the love that Jack showed him even for the little things, Mac was not even sure if Jack was capable of hating people. Well, unless they were really bad people, and Mac wasn’t a bad person right?</p>
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